Overview

• Chancellor Friedrich Merz traveled to London and signed a friendship treaty with Prime Minister Keir Starmer at a press conference north of the city.
• The agreement is intended to secure freedom and prosperity for Germany and the United Kingdom and to shape bilateral relations for decades beyond Brexit.
• During the ceremony, Merz publicly congratulated Holocaust survivor Anita Lasker-Wallfisch on her 100th birthday.
• He said he had privately wished ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel a happy 71st birthday and would reserve any public greeting until she turns 100, highlighting their tense relationship.
• Merz’s gestures combined diplomatic outreach with pointed political symbolism about historical memory and intra-party dynamics within the CDU.